Volume 115, Issue 13

Monday, October 29, 2018 I Vol. 115 Iss. 13

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AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER • SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

Nearly 70 percent of students who study abroad pick European countries Average number of trustees at peer schools: 46 Number of trustees at GW: 21

Each icon represents two trustees EMILY RECKO | GRAPHICS EDITOR

Source: Multiple universities’ websites

Board of Trustees downsizes by about half in administrative effort to boost productivity board member’s workload has been impacted by having fewer members and what challenges officials have encountered since shrinking the board.

He declined to say how officials encourage board members to be involved with GW after they have left.

The board – which has 21 members – is roughly half the size of the 46-member average among the University’s peer schools. New York University has the largest board with 61 members, while the University of Pittsburgh has the smallest, with 36 voting trustees.

Experts in higher education leadership said fewer trustees means that each person takes on more responsibilities, which could promote accountability and increase involvement in the board’s projects and committees.

Richard Chait, a professor at the Harvard University Graduate School

of boards that would like to emulate George Washington but have not yet discovered circumstances favorable to After shrinking in size by about do so,” Chait said. “There’s more achalf over the past six years, the Board countability, more opportunities to deof Trustees is now the smallest of all 12 liberate and more engagement.” of its peer institutions.

Rebekah Burch Basinger, a fundOver the past five years, the board raising and board education consulhas downsized from 43 members to tant at Basinger Consulting, said many 21 – a move officials said will increase schools retain a large board memberboard productivity and improve comship because trustees are generally munication between members. Higher expected to contribute between 40 and education experts said that while a 60 percent of a university’s fundraising smaller board could boost engagegoals. ment, cutting members could mean “If you have a big board, and you sacrificing diversity and donations. can have quite a few people who have “We’ve continued to reduce the significant wealth or have friends who size of the Board of Trustees to make are wealthy that they might be able to it more agile and responsive,” Nelson introduce to the school, that can be a Carbonell, the chairman of the Board really good thing,” she said. of Trustees, said at a Faculty Senate In years past, members of the Board meeting earlier this month. of Trustees have donated millions to Carbonell said the smaller group the University. Former trustee Mark makes quicker governance deciShenkman donated $5 million sions and ensures that members in 2014 to support career serare informed about the board’s “We’ve continued to reduce the size vices, and the same year, trustee activities. He added that downTucker gave $1 million of the Board of Trustees to make it Avram sizing allows officials to “enlist to the athletic department. more agile and responsive.” high-caliber trustees,” but he did Basinger said larger boards not say how. also have an easier time cultiNELSON CARBONELL He said he will evaluate the vating diversity among trustees CHAIRMAN, BOARD OF TRUSTEES size of the board depending on across various categories, inthe University’s needs and may cluding race, gender and sociocut or add more members. He economic status, simply because said the board’s focus on leaderthere are more positions to fill. ship – rather than philanthropy – en- of Education, said that when boards Cyndy English, the recording secreables it to have fewer members than have too many members, it becomes tary for the board of trustees at Tulane other schools who rely on their large difficult to carry out the group’s basic University, said that when the school’s membership to bring in donations. governing functions – like policy de- board size increased to 42 five years Carbonell declined to say how he liberation and strategy formulation – ago, the number of members was “unhas asked members to leave over the because there are too many people in manageable” because officials could years or how he has picked members the room. not adequately keep trustees on task to remain on the board, but he said Harvard has 32 members on its and divide work efficiently. Tulane oftrustees are elected to one four-year board of trustees, according to the ficials are currently looking to cut the term that can be renewed for a second. school’s website. board’s size from 39 to 35 within the He said the Committee on Governance “When you have a large board, it next two years, English said. and Nominations “has set the expecta- tends to feel much more like a lecture English said the chairman of Tution among Trustees for this to be the room,” Chait said. “It’s one-way com- lane’s board of trustees has been workstandard term of service.” munication. There are twice as many ing to reduce the size of the board since “Our trustees are among the Uni- people that are in pursuit of a fixed his election in July 2017 to give fewer versity’s greatest ambassadors, and amount of airtime.” members larger roles in the group’s their commitment and involvement in Chait called the board shrinkage a initiatives.

GW doesn’t end with their term of ser- “commendable step” by the Univer“The general conversation is, ‘We vice,” he said. sity. don’t need to be bigger, we have to Carbonell declined to say how each “Frankly, I think there are a number work harder,’” she said.

KYLIE FRONCZAK REPORTER

SARAH ROACH ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Students who study abroad are choosing to travel to Europe at the highest rate in recent history.

About 68 percent of students who study abroad selected countries in Europe as their destination last academic year, up about seven percentage points from the previous year and the highest rate in at least five years. Officials said Europe has always been a top study abroad pick because students feel safer in countries that don’t often make headlines for war or disease, and European countries’ close proximity to one another could offer students more accessible and affordable travel opportunities.

“Students may feel that Europe is ‘familiar’ intellectually/culturally,” Maritheresa Frain, the director of the Office of Study Abroad, said in an email.

“Studying abroad for many students is a stretch outside of their comfort zone, so they may be acting conservatively to ensure their successful adaptation to a new culture.”

Next to Europe, Asia was the second-most popular study abroad region, bringing in about 10 percent of students studying abroad. Latin America and the Caribbean came in at No. 3 with roughly 7 percent of students.

Between 55 to 60 percent of students who study abroad nationally have chosen to travel to Europe since 2005, according to data from the annual Open Doors report conducted by the Institute of International Education.

Frain said the high volume of students studying abroad in Europe is “not surprising” because Europe has always been a top study abroad location for GW. Between 2012 and 2017, roughly 60 to 68 percent of study abroad stu-

dents traveled to the continent annually.

“GW students often learn about programs from other GW students,” Frain said in an email. “When study abroad alums come back and promote their program, they often motivate their fellow students to explore the same destination.”

The University offers 153 study abroad programs in Europe, amounting to more than 50 percent of the University’s total program offerings. GW offers 43 programs in Asia, 33 programs in Latin America and the Caribbean, 18 programs in the Middle East and North Africa, 20 programs in Oceania and 22 programs in Sub-Saharan Africa, she said.

She added that more students may have selected Europe recently because there are “geopolitical challenges” in other locations, like wars in the Middle East and pollution concerns in China. Frain said U.S. news coverage of events like Argentina’s economic crisis or violence in Brazil may lead students to think some countries are too unsafe to visit.

She said Europe may also be the most popular study abroad destination because study abroad “has its roots” in Europe after countries tried to recruit students to take language and culture programs after World War II. In Europe, the United Kingdom was ranked as the top study abroad destination last academic year, followed by France, Spain and Italy. Outside Europe, China is ranked as the fifthmost popular study abroad site for students, according to institutional data.

Frain said students may choose to study in the United Kingdom because the country houses “excellent universities,” like the universities of Oxford and See UNITED KINGDOM Page 2

SA leaders revive charge to examine controversial building names LINDSAY PAULEN & SARAH ROACH STAFF WRITERS

Student Association leaders are relaunching a task force to evaluate the controversial history behind campus building names after the group flatlined last year.

Shelby Singleton, the SA’s vice president for diversity and inclusion, submitted a proposal to University President Thomas LeBlanc earlier this month to create a committee comprised of faculty, students and officials who will research building names – like the Marvin Center and Lisner Auditorium – that were named after former University figures who students say were discriminatory toward students of color.

She said the group will first create a set of guidelines to evaluate the names and will eventually produce recommendations for building name changes, though no timeline has been established for the project.

Singleton said that as a student of color, partaking in programs like diversity training in buildings named after figures with racist pasts “does not live up to our current values” of promoting an inclusive student body.

“In a building that is our student center that houses our welcome center, food options, study centers, student org offices – it’s ridiculous that it’s in a center named after a man who did not respect a lot of student rights and identities on campus,” Singleton said.

SA leaders originally formed a task force of student leaders last academic year to research building names with potentially discriminatory namesakes, with a particular focus on Cloyd Heck Marvin, a former University president who was a proponent of segregation. But the task force dissolved by the end of the academic year after a drop in participation and stalled research.

Now, SA leaders are proposing a task force comprised of about 10

SARAH URTZ | HATCHET PHOTOGRAPHER

Shelby Singleton, the SA’s vice president for diversity and inclusion, submitted a proposal to University President Thomas LeBlanc earlier this month to create a committee comprised of faculty, students and officials who will research building names.

administrators, faculty and student leaders that will operate by the spring semester. LeBlanc has not yet responded to the SA’s proposal, but Singleton said he will reply in the next two weeks to decide whether he or SA leaders should spearhead the committee.

Singleton said that in addition to examining the Marvin Center, students will also look into changing building names like Lisner Auditorium, which was built in 1943 using a donation from former trustee Abram Lisner. The theater was previously segregated and denied entry to black attendees, including the dean of Howard University’s medical school three years after its

debut – leading to a leaflet and boycotting campaign and canceled performances.

The task force will evaluate how the University has changed in recent years – like the increasing diversity of its student body and student sentiment about building names – and will develop guidelines by the end of the academic year that will help the group determine whether the task force should recommend changing a building name, Singleton said.

“It’s a really important part of our community to figure out what we stand for and what we expect out of each other,” Singleton said.

SA President Ashley Le said involving administrators will make

the task force more effective than student-led committees because officials like LeBlanc have more influence over quick institutional change.

She said that based on prior discussions over the past two months with LeBlanc and Nelson Carbonell, the chairman of the Board of Trustees, she believes officials and faculty have already indicated interest in evaluating building names.

She said that when SA leaders submitted the task force proposal to LeBlanc, they included information about successful task forces at other schools, like Yale and Georgetown universities, that eventually inspired building name changes.

“Looking at models from other

universities, like Yale, the president created that committee and six months later, the college was changed,” Le said. “Because it was an approach that remains a priority from the president at the top of the university, it was very effective.”

Student leaders at institutions that created similar committees said including officials in name task forces is more effective than having student-led groups because administrators have stronger sway over institutional changes than students.

Georgetown University renamed two of its buildings in 2015 that were named after former presidents who sold slaves to pay off university debt. Several other institutions, like Princeton University and the University of Texas at Austin, have also followed suit with their own building name changes.

Yale University renamed one of its residential colleges in February 2017 because it was named for John C. Calhoun, an alumnus of the university and former U.S. vice president who said slavery was a “positive good” and promoted white supremacist policies.

Saloni Rao, the president of the Yale College Council, said the task force comprised of students and administrators – which has since dissolved after renaming Calhoun College – can reconvene at any point to research new building names that students and officials may deem necessary to change.

She said the task force developed guidelines, like what kinds of contributions a person made to Yale and what kind of legacy they left, that future officials and students can use as a basis for potential discussions about changing building names.

“It’s frustrating sometimes at Yale that change can happen so slowly, but I do think there’s something to be said conversely for taking the time to consider the implications and the logistics for making any sort of monumental changes,” Rao said.

News October 29, 2018 • Page 2

CRIME LOG FRAUD

Off Campus 10/16/2018 – 2:30 p.m.

Closed Case A female student reported to GW Police Department officers that she contacted an unknown male subject on social media to inquire about leasing an off-campus apartment. The male stated that she could not see the apartment until she paid the first month’s rent and the security deposit, so she wire transferred $2,250 to him, according to a Metropolitan Police Department report. The student discovered three days later that the man was not employed by the property management company he claimed to represent, the MPD report states.

Off-campus incident

FUGITIVE FROM JUSTICE

Marvin Center 10/19/2018 – 12:06 p.m.

Closed Case GWPD responded to a report of a suspicious individual who interjected himself into a campus tour. Officers contacted the individual and determined that he was not affiliated with GW and that he had an active bench warrant with MPD, who responded and transported him to the Second District police station for processing.

Referred to MPD

HARASSMENT: EMAIL AND ELECTRONIC MEDIA

Potomac House 10/19/2018 – 1:50 a.m.

Closed Case A female student reported to GWPD that she received harassing text messages from a male staff member. There is limited information about the staff member’s position at GW. Referred to Title IX office —Compiled by Valerie Yurk

United Kingdom is top study abroad site From Page 1 Cambridge, that are well-known to American students. Because language learning nationally “has been on a downward trend,” she said students may also choose the United Kingdom because they can speak English.

“Culturally, American students may feel ‘closer’ to the U.K. than other countries around the world,” Frain said.

“There are still interesting cultural adjustments/learning for students choosing the U.K. which should not be underestimated.”

Frain said officials are promoting programs outside Europe through GW’s partner program in Chile and the Global Bachelor’s Program, which allows students to study abroad for up to three semesters and offers a launchpad site in Shanghai. The Global Bachelor’s Program recently added a new site in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

The University and its partner programs also offer additional financial aid for students studying abroad in locations in other continents “in the hope that a cheaper price point would motivate students to study outside of Europe,” Frain said.

The Office of Study Abroad is also reviewing all programs “to determine where we have gaps” in regional and academic initiatives, she said.

“OSA’s goal is to identify strategic initiatives to continue to diversify the study abroad portfolio to include more options in underrepresented parts of the world, especially university exchange programs,” she said.

Study abroad experts said students may

choose European countries over other locations because they are able to easily travel between countries and can speak English in countries like Ireland and England.

Anne Gibson, the director of study abroad at Tulane University, said students could choose Europe over other study abroad locations because people from European countries are more familiar with English, and students may want to study abroad where their peers are likely also studying.

But she added that universities have a “duty and responsibility” to help students explore a more diverse range of program offerings. At Tulane, one of GW’s peer institutions, the top two study abroad destinations are Copenhagen, Denmark and Amsterdam, she said.

“If we’re talking about trying to create a more diverse curriculum, adding global curriculum requirements, adding diversity requirements and core requirements, I think it’s important to help students think through what can be gained by going to non-traditional settings,” Gibson said.

Sara Dumont, the executive director for study abroad at American University, said officials may be more confident in sending their students to European countries because they generally encounter fewer health or safety concerns there than in other regions.

“One has to think about the health and safety and all those considerations,” she said.

“It’s a lot easier to go to Europe – it’s less daunting for a faculty member to lead a group of students to London than it is to go to a place like Nairobi.”

GW’s focus on student experience backed by Stanford University report SARAH ROACH ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

A report released earlier this month states that student engagement is a better predictor of college outcomes than selectivity – a notion officials said they have been attuned to as they concentrate on promoting a better student experience.

Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education conducted a review of college outcomes, like student learning and job satisfaction, and correlated their relationship with factors like selectivity and rankings. Researchers determined that student engagement is more meaningful in promoting positive student outcomes than a school’s rank or admit rate.

At a time when GW has fallen in college rankings and increased its acceptance rate, higher education experts said officials may be prioritizing the diversity of its student body and overall student satisfaction over the number of students they admit – a move that could contribute to a more content student body in the long run.

The report states that rankings are “problematic,” college selectivity is not a “reliable predictor” of student learning, and engagement in college through student mentorships and internships is more important than the prestige of the school. Researchers reviewed literature about college outcomes to produce the findings, according to the report.

The report advises universities to focus on providing students with a good oncampus experience, which could be accomplished through internship opportunities, extracurricular activities and student mentors.

“This focus on selectivity may stem from misconceptions about college rankings and how college selectivity affects both what happens during the college years and life after graduation,” the report reads.

Laurie Koehler, the senior vice provost of enrollment and the student experience, said choosing whether to attend a particular school “has almost nothing to do” with its rankings in a particular year.

FILE PHOTO BY OLIVIA ANDERSON | PHOTO EDITOR

Laurie Koehler, the senior vice provost of enrollment and the student experience, said choosing whether to attend a particular school “has almost nothing to do” with its rankings.

Koehler said students are more likely to choose a college after visiting a school because “at its core, the college search process is truly about finding the best fit.”

She said officials are “committed to providing a holistic approach” to students’ on-campus experience by offering global programs and “hands-on” learning.

Officials have prioritized the student experience by debuting the Office of Enrollment and the Student Experience in July, “where officials are working to create a positive and cohesive experience from the admissions process to graduation,” she said.

University President Thomas LeBlanc made the student experience a priority during his first year at GW, reshaping administrative roles and University departments to better engage students with officials.

“We are more focused on enrolling academically talented, hard-working, engaged and diverse students and creating a student-focused, positive college experience for our students,” she said.

She said the University’s rising retention rate – which currently stands at about 93 percent, the highest in seven years – “suggests we are having success in doing both.”

Koehler added that rankings agencies like U.S. News and World Report “have

come to realize” that the admit rate is a measure of how many applicants a school denies, not a measure of the quality of an institution or its student body. For its 2019 rankings, U.S. News did not consider admit rates in its calculations, though the figure was previously given a 1.25 percent weight.

Higher education experts said they agree with the study, saying that colleges that aim to maintain a high ranking and low selectivity tend to shy away from recruiting a more diverse student body.

Jay Halfond, a professor of the practice of continuing and distance education at Boston University, said rankings are “not meant to be an empirical analysis of institutional quality” but are often used as a guide to “help sell magazines.” By judging a college by its selectivity, he said schools are reiterating a “reputation for exclusivity, not quality.”

This year, GW fell seven slots to No. 63 in the U.S. News top colleges rankings.

At the same time, the University climbed at least 19 spots in Times Higher Education’s rankings of the top 200 schools in the world.

“There is no set hierarchy of schools so much as a variety of institutions where prospective students need to find the best fit,” Halfond

said in an email. “We need to promote this institutional diversity, not come up with a one-model-fits-all view of higher education.”

John Slaughter, a professor of engineering and education at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education, said rankings tend to be “misleading” because they often do not correlate with the quality of education a student receives.

He added that at a school like GW, which has fallen in rankings and become less selective, officials could be focused on admitting a more diverse pool of applicants instead of the percentage of students they are accepting.

The University’s acceptance rate rose for the third consecutive year for the Class of 2022, which officials attributed to accepting students who might be more likely to attend and stay at GW, boosting the University’s six-year graduation rate.

The University should not worry about its drop in rankings or decreased selectivity as long as officials are working to connect students with engaging faculty all four years, Slaughter said.

“Institutions should be less concerned with that and more concerned with examining themselves to do the best possible job to give students a quality educational experience,” he said.

Mobile mammogram service screens nearly 40,000 women since launch in 1996

DONNA ARMSTRONG | CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR

More than 20 years after the opening of the Mammovan, doctors have screened more than 37,000 women for breast cancer.

HANNAH LEWIS & PAIGE MORSE REPORTERS

Across the street from the law school, a bubblegum-pink, cherry blossomadorned van sits, waiting for patients to walk through its door for a free breast cancer screening.

More than 20 years after the opening of the Mammovan – a 40-foot-long, 15-ton van that provides women with free breast cancer screenings year-round – doctors have screened more than 37,000 women for breast cancer. The program has also received almost $500,000 from a single charity as the van acts as a way to promote health equity in the District, officials said.

“It has allowed us to offer the women that we see, regardless of their ability to pay, the latest technology,” Rachel Brem, the director of the breast imaging and intervention center for GW Medi-

cal Faculty Associates and the director of the Mammovan program, said.

The Mammovan screens approximately 25 uninsured women over the age of 40 each day. When it’s not traveling to screen patients, the van sits on the corner of 20th and H streets. The nine physicians in the program screen 2,500 women each year and work to provide early detection for breast cancer, especially for women who are unable to travel for doctor appointments, Brem said.

Brem added that doctors do not check tax records to see if women qualify for the free care – the physicians just “ask women to be honest” and provide free screenings to all patients.

“We want to offer the women in our community everything we can to get lifesaving mammograms,” she said. “That’s what we do.”

Brem said the Mammovan houses one of the longestrunning mobile programs in

the country. She said the van continues to fill a need for accessible cancer screenings in the District, which has the highest death rate for breast cancer in the country, according to the D.C. Cancer Consortium.

Brem said that last year, Eaglebank – a bank in the D.C., Maryland and Virginia area – donated a new Mammovan to the program that features 3-D mammography technology.

Brem said annual fundraisers, like the Blush Lunch hosted earlier this month, also offset the expenses of the Mammovan. The Safeway Foundation – a charity organization run by the Albertsons Companies Foundation – was recognized as an honorary sponsor this year because it has donated more than $450,000 since the start of the Mammovan program, officials said.

Medical school spokeswoman Ashley Rizzardo declined to say how much

money was raised at the Blush Lunch. She also declined to say how much has been raised to support the Mammovan since its launch.

The Mammovan was created in 1996 through a grant from the Prevent Cancer Foundation. The van’s daily screenings are funded through operational money from the Medical Faculty Associates in conjunction with donations from corporations.

“A $300 donation can provide a mammogram for a woman who can’t afford it,” MFA spokeswoman Barbara Porter said in an email.

Brem said the Mammovan program also works to address health disparities in minority communities in the District. She said the death rate for black women is higher than the death rate for white women with breast cancer, and the program works to engage communities that are “underserved” and have a higher risk of death from breast cancer.

Black women have a 20 to 40 percent higher breast cancer death rate than white women nationwide, according to the nonprofit group Breastcancer.org.

Sharad Goyal, a professor of radiology, said the Mammovan can help to both reduce the number of breast cancer-related deaths and help women in D.C. overcome issues like a lack of transportation, limited access to medical facilities and the cost of the examination.

“The GW Mammovan is an integral part of the GW Cancer Center, which is focused on the developing multidisciplinary clinical, research, education and outreach programs together in a comprehensive approach to cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment and survivorship,” Goyal said.

NEWS

THE GW HATCHET

October 29, 2018 • Page 3

Public health school debuts genome sequencing facility in SEH ALEC RICH REPORTER

Officials hope GW’s newest genome sequencing facility will become a local hub for genetic research.

The Genomics Core, which opened last week, is run by the Milken Institute School of Public Health and housed in the Computational Biology Institute on the seventh floor of the Science and Engineering Hall.

Faculty and officials said the facility features new sequencing equipment that will help researchers interpret the genetic code of samples to solve issues like HIV and disease outbreaks worldwide.

Lynn Goldman, the dean of Milken, said the facility has enabled researchers to analyze large sets of data to advance the understanding of genetic material and sequencing.

“With the Genomics Core, the Computational Biology Institute can assist cross-disciplinary researchers to apply this approach to solve complex problems that affect all of us,” Goldman said in an email.

At the official opening last week, University President Thomas LeBlanc said the facility acts as a central space for sequencing genetic mate-

CONNOR WITSCHONKE | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Keith Crandall, the director of the Genomics Core, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics and the director of the Computational Biology Institute, said the facility provides “state-of-the-art” sequencing capacity.

rial.

“Our new Genomics Core brings next-generation DNA sequencing to the entire GW community and beyond by providing the equipment and expertise to facilitate genomic research,” LeBlanc said at the event.

Keith Crandall, the director of the Genomics Core, a professor of epidemiology

and biostatistics and the director of the Computational Biology Institute, said the facility provides “state-ofthe-art” sequencing capacity, which will prompt researchers to incorporate genomics into their research.

“Public health genomics is an active and growing area of public health, and the core allows students and research-

ers to collect, analyze and integrate such data into their educational and research pursuits,” Crandall said in an email.

He added that the two sequencers in the lab cost about $320,000. He said the facility offers DNA and RNA extraction and sequencing services to researchers across GW and at other institutions like

Georgetown University and the Smithsonian.

“We provide full service – samples to sequence data – or just the sequencing service if labs are comfortable extracting DNA from samples and prepping things for sequencing,” he said. “Thus, we can provide genomic data to individuals who may not even have lab space and or any experience with DNA sequencing.”

Castle Raley, the lab director of the core, said researchers will no longer have to turn to outside organizations to sequence their samples and now have “centralized” equipment. He added that the facility provides nucleic acid extraction and purification services.

“That way, we can use that to leverage better pricing, and make sure that we’re following the latest and greatest protocols,” he said. “You get a lot of advantages like that when you run a core like a business.”

He said having the facility on campus provides a more personal experience since researchers who use the facility will receive face-to-face consultations about the samples they bring to the lab. He said the researchers will also have their sequencing results explained to them, a service

that larger centers often do not provide.

“We can do all of the upfront consultations to help plan out experiments so that we’re making sure that the investigators are getting the most advantageous or are following the most advantageous approach to get the best data, the most data, for the least amount of money,” he said.

He said the facility hopes to work with researchers and medical professionals from GW Hospital and the Cancer Center to potentially offer clinical diagnostics on patient samples.

Raley added that the launch of the core aligns with the University’s recent focus on bolstering research in recent months. The university president said bolstering research was one of his top priorities last academic year and has since hired a new vice president for research and restructured the reporting line of the research office.

“In the last year or so, there’s been a push toward enabling and promoting more of a research atmosphere here on campus and within the school, so this provides the school with a very valuable and powerful tool for enabling all forms of research,” Raley said.

GSEHD establishes master’s program in Jewish education LAUREN PELLER ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Students can now earn a master’s degree with a focus on Jewish education.

The Mayberg Center for Jewish Education and Leadership in the Graduate School of Education and Human Development will debut a twoyear master’s program this summer called Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Jewish education. Faculty said the 30-credit master’s degree fills a need in the D.C. region to educate professionals about Jewish teaching.

Sharon Blumenthal-Cohen, the associate program director, said students are required to take core courses from the already-existing Curriculum and Instruction master’s program in GSEHD, which include topics like quantitative research and teacher leadership. Students will also take more specific

courses on subjects like Jewish history, the Bible and rabbinics, she said.

“What we’ve done with the program is that we’ve combined the core courses of Curriculum and Instruction, which are not focused on any particular kind of school setting, with the courses in Jewish education, and so, by doing that, by the end of the program the candidates are really open to teaching in a variety of educational settings,” she said.

Blumenthal-Cohen said she is marketing the program to potential students by visiting Jewish schools and educational communities in the D.C. region to establish the program’s first student cohort. She said the program has a target number of about 10 students and it will not have an enrollment cap for summer 2019.

“We are presenting this program as a cohort experience, and so we want stu-

dents to be able to connect with each other and build a community of scholarship together and support each other through their work in the program,” BlumenthalCohen said.

She said students will complete a 10-week internship and practicum as part of the program, which she said will place students in “reallife” settings to hone their skills teaching Jewish-related topics.

“Essentially, it is a degree for folks who are either presently working in Jewish educational settings or individuals who want to start to work in settings, and we’re talking about K-12, and have very rich content knowledge but are lacking the training on how to teach that knowledge,” she said.

Blumenthal-Cohen added that GW is the only local nonreligious university to offer a Jewish education specialized degree. The school already

Board of Trustees to review mission statement AMY LIU REPORTER

The Board of Trustees is planning to review the statement that dictates GW’s goals and purpose.

Nelson Carbonell, the chairman of the Board of Trustees, said the board is looking into revamping the mission statement to be shorter and more precise, which he said may not include “everything we do here at GW.” He said the governance and nominations committee will tackle the review this year as part of the board’s regular three-year review of its bylaws.

“I believe it’s important that we are always mindful of our mission, and that includes reviewing how we define it and how we pursue it,” he said in an email.

Carbonell said it “made sense” to review the mission statement this year after the University finished its reaccreditation process, which occurs roughly every decade and ensures that GW is living up to higher education standards. He said the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, GW’s accrediting body, “highlighted the need to review and refresh” the statement.

While the commission commended GW’s “clearly and distinctly” defined mission statement, the group also suggested that officials update the University’s strategic plan and mission as University President Thomas LeBlanc, who stepped into his role last year, translated his priorities into action items.

“We are looking at returning to something simpler,” Carbonell said. “They felt we should make sure the mission

was achievable.”

GW’s current mission statement, which clocks in at 238 words, commits the University to promoting cultural and intellectual diversity and exploring new ideas and knowledge. The statement highlights the University’s commitment to provide a “stimulating intellectual environment” for students and faculty.

The statement also notes GW’s commitment to create research “grounded in knowledge and theory” and to promote creativity in the arts and sciences. The mission also touches on GW’s relationship with the D.C. community, saying the University “draws upon the rich array of resources from the National Capital Area to enhance its educational endeavors.”

“In return, the University, through its students, faculty, staff, and alumni, contributes talent and knowledge to improve the quality of life in metropolitan Washington, D.C.,” the mission states.

Carbonell said that even though he believes GW does improve life in the District, it is challenging to include the obligation in the mission statement because the commitment is broad.

Carbonell said the board would update community members as the review process progressed but he declined to say who will provide input for the statement and why. He declined to say what specific areas of the mission statement he felt were dated or not relevant.

Among GW’s 12 peer schools, 11 mission statements did not stress the importance of bettering the city in which the university is located.

Some of the most common phrases in mission statements at GW’s peer schools include an emphasis on shaping students to become independent thinkers and connecting students and faculty.

Anthony Yezer, a professor of economics, said GW’s mission statement is general to embody the central ideals of “teaching, research and service” that stand at the core of the University. But he said faculty do not usually conduct their teachings and methods by directly following the mission statement.

“When we recruit faculty to the University – we don’t recruit them based on the mission statement,” Yezer said. “We recruit them based on what we’re doing here in this department.”

Michael Massiah, a chemistry professor, said he thinks the current mission statement’s goal to improve the lives of people in D.C. is achievable and does not need to be changed.

“The mission is not just to educate but to prepare a human being to take that knowledge and apply it,” Massiah said. “And I believe that’s a good mission and it’s something we clearly strive for and we’re successful for.”

Harvey Feigenbaum, a professor of political science and international affairs, said the mission statement is “something to remind people at GW who we are.”

“The mission statement doesn’t need to be read by people in GW for them to act in ways that are completely in accord with the mission statement,” Feigenbaum said. “The mission statement reflects the University – it doesn’t necessarily guide it.”

offers the master’s program in experiential education and Jewish cultural arts, which prepares students to work in Jewish museums, art institutions and synagogues.

Erica Brown, the director of the master’s program, said the program was developed to fill both the regional and the national need for Jewish educators.

Brown said the program offers courses on topics like Jewish history and the Bible, which she said can help students hone their skills in Jewish education.

“We’re looking for students who want a missionfocused career and see them-

selves wanting to contribute to the landscape of education,” she said. “We want to give people an opportunity to be in the nation’s capital and in a place where a lot of leadership decisions get made.”

Benjamin Jacobs, a visiting associate professor of experiential education and Jewish cultural arts, said that even a specialized program focused on Jewish education encompasses a wide range of learners, educators and subject areas.

“It is a robust field that, like all professional fields in education and human development, requires excellent

educators well-prepared in the aims, contents, and methods of their craft,” he said.

He said creating a graduate program in D.C. focused on Jewish education and studies contributes to having “excellent” Jewish educators that can advance the field of Jewish education.

“Educators at GSEHD preparing for all types of settings can learn from the unique opportunities and challenges that face Jewish educators, such as pluralistic learning, experiential education in informal settings like cultural institutions and much more,” he said.

Opinions October 29, 2018 • Page 4

WHAT THE UNIVERSITY WON'T TALK ABOUT THIS WEEK What challenges officials have encountered since shrinking the Board of Trustees p. 1 FROM GWHATCHET.COM/OPINIONS

“GW’s top priority should be maintaining and promoting the health and safety of all students – and that includes their sexual health, too.”

—JACK MURPHY, A HATCHET WRITER published Oct. 25

Students must treat service workers with respect to shift GW’s reputation

R

estaurant and custodial staff are fed up with the way students are treating them.

Last week, my friend and I stood in line waiting to order at &pizza.

My friend blurted out her order and moved on, not thinking twice about how she interacted with the employee. The employee yelled, “Hey, you go to GW?” My friend nodded and the server scoffed, “figures.” My friend didn’t mean to be rude, but the employee’s response spoke volumes.

Michael McMahon Writer The employee could have been having a bad day and perhaps that is why he snapped at my friend. But his response is indicative of a reputation that students have in our community and it needs to stop.

From not cleaning communal pots in dorm kitchens to leaving food and wrappers on tables around campus, as a whole students lack common courtesy. Whether it’s because we are in a rush to get to our next class, internship or social gathering, it is easy to overlook how we treat

our servers.

Although we might not intend for it to be rude, skipping simple formalities, like saying “hello” and “thank you,” when interacting with servers, custodial staff and employees comes off as arrogant. How we treat our environment and the people around us understandably affects the way our community views us and we shouldn’t take their opinions of our student community lightly.

We claim the title of being loud, wealthy and rude in the eyes of D.C. and Foggy Bottom residents because of the way we are treating the people around us. But if the University is going to make any progress to reverse its reputation of entitlement, we must start small by treating community members around us with respect.

Due to GW’s unique dining system, students engage with restaurant workers more than most other college students.

Of all the people that students interact with on a daily basis, restaurant and custodial employees are not given our priority. They may not have the most glamorous job, but they still deserve our respect. Students should make a greater effort to greet workers by saying hello, cleaning up after

Cartoon by Jeanne Franchesca Dela Cruz ourselves, tipping and, overall, making attempts to be more courteous.

We learn the virtues of “please” and “thank you” as a child as we are reminded to add “the magic words” at the end of every request to be polite and show our gratitude.

It requires practically no effort, yet it is increasingly apparent that students still choose to disregard these words in our

fast paced environment.

Although saying “thank you” isn’t the most gracious action that we can do, it would help change our reputation of arrogant and entitled in the eyes of outsiders.

It has often been said that one can tell a lot about a person by the way they treat their servers. So students should take note of the way they represent the school and

STAFF EDITORIAL

Affirmative action lawsuit should prompt universities to re-examine admissions process A recent lawsuit making sure they are not at the ex- occur under the guise of national headlines involves pense of inclusivity. affirmative action. The sea group of students at HarNo admissions process cret nature of universities’ vard University who claim is perfect and it is impos- admissions practices crethe admissions process was sible to perfect an inher- ates a situation in which we designed to discriminate ently subjective system, but would never know about against Asian-American ap- universities can strive to- these flawed processes. plicants. ward a more perfect system While this case revealed Harvard defended its that treats applicants fairly some troubling practices, policies and GW aligned through transparency. its larger implication is that itself with the Ivy League The heart of the law- universities must provide school this summer. The suit highlights the struggle transparency in the meatopic of affirmative action that universities encoun- sures and processes they in higher education has al- ter when addressing di- use when evaluating candiways been a hot topic, but versity. Universities are dates. this lawsuit could have far quick to advertise inclusivTo enact meaningful reaching consequences in ity and strive to attract stu- change in light of this lawcollege admissions. Regard- dents from different back- suit, students need to call less of the outcome of the grounds, but they are often on universities to be transcase, GW and other univer- less open when it comes to parent about their policies. sities should use this news revealing how they recruit While it is unlikely that event to spark a reuniversities will begin view of their own adrevealing the specifics missions policies to of how they make their GW and other universities ensure they are transdecisions, should use this news event admissions parent and inclusive. we should push for The University transparency because it to spark a review of their offers a non-descripis the only way to know own policies to ensure they tive statement statif discrimination is ocare transparent and ing that its admission curring. decision-making proThis case also presinclusive. cess is holistic. For a ents an opportunity for school that received GW and other universimore than 25,000 apties to reflect on their plications in 2016 for the diverse classes of students. own admissions policies. fall semester alone, a truly Some Asian students With Harvard’s situation in holistic review of each can- fear that the lawsuit isn’t mind, the University should didate is not possible. While just about preventing dis- consider how it weighs race most colleges are content crimination, it’s about stop- in its admissions decisions with saying they have an ping the practice of affirma- and possibly update its overarching review pro- tive action. But, affirmative practices to pursue a dicess, that should no longer action is not the problem verse student body in an be the standard and univer- and scrapping it altogether appropriate manner. sities should be transparent is not the answer.

Universities can support about what procedures they Opponents of affirma- minority students withactually employ. tive action often say race out discriminating against The lawsuit against Har- plays a role in disadvantag- Asian students. Affirmavard shows practices that ing students, but if the sys- tive action is about creatare likely used for efficien- tem worked effectively, race ing a more equal system, cy, like assigning students would be used to the ad- but equality shouldn’t be a number ranking based on vantage of minorities that achieved by taking from various factors. It is not un- have been disadvantaged others. likely that similar practices their entire lives, and not As the lawsuit against are used at other schools. make it harder for a partic- Harvard continues to unWhile universities should ular group of students. fold, GW should take this make every effort to be as The Harvard case time to re-evaluate its adholistic as possible in their brought to light question- missions process to ensure review, they are bound to able practices and showed it prevents discrimination use shortcuts and must en- how discrimination can while fostering diversity.

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change the way they interact with the people around them.

When you think about it, people in the service industry put up with a lot.

They deal with picky eaters, poor tippers, drunks, snobs and people in a rush all while almost always advertising a smile. The absolute least we can do is treat them with respect.

We don’t have to tip them 50 percent or learn their

life story, but we should be conscious of the interactions we have with the people around us. Clean up your mess and give people the common courtesy that you would want others to give you. It may be a small step toward changing GW’s image problem, but it will make a difference.

—Michael McMahon, a freshman, is a Hatchet opinions writer.

GW should collect data on sexuality to properly serve student body

A

bout one in 25 people in the United States identify as LGBTQ. However, the exact number has never been known because the U.S. Census does not explicitly ask about sexual orientation. Sens. Kamala Harris, D-Calif. and Tom Carper, D-Del. introduced legislation earlier this year to include LGBTQ-related questions on the approaching 2020 census. But the 2020 census will not explicitly ask respondents if they are part of the LGBTQ community and that lack of information will massively hurt the community.

Jack Murphy Writer Aside from the simple disrespect of not being recognized unless in a same-sex marriage, not counting LGBTQ Americans is problematic because the government will lack the data to properly allocate resources to support the LGBTQ community.

This problem is not exclusive to the federal government, as GW also does not collect data on sexual orientation. GW should collect critical data to learn how many of its students are part of the LGBTQ community so administrators can properly allocate resources for the school’s LGBTQ students.

The Office of Institutional Research and Planning collects and publishes enrollment data with demographic information about race, gender and national-

ity. In higher education, few institutions collect data on LGBTQ students. Out of GW’s 12 peer schools, only Tufts University collects data regarding sexuality. Despite the fact that this is not a popular practice, it is essential that GW knows how many LGBTQ students it serves so it can properly dispense resources to a community that is already chronically underserved.

What makes this lack of representation so problematic is that GW is known for having a large LGBTQ population. GW houses one of the few chapters of Delta Lambda Phi, a fraternity for gay, bisexual, transgender and progressive men, and has a strong reputation as an LGBTQ-friendly school. Failing to recognize this group could mean resources won’t be properly allocated based on the number of students. If GW has a concrete number of queer students on campus, it could allocate funds with a more informed view of need on campus.

For example, GW could appoint special staff at the Colonial Health Center to alleviate the chronically under-serviced medical care available to the LGBTQ community. The Human Rights Watch argues that the LGBTQ community is medically underserved as there is a national lack of health care professionals with the sensitivity training needed to properly treat LGBTQ patients.

With information about how much of its student

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population is LGBTQ, GW could better arm the CHC with more informed staff members.

Additionally, if the University knew how many LGBTQ students attended GW, and made that information public, it could prompt the Student Association to allocate more funds to student organizations that cater to the LGBTQ community, like Allied in Pride. No wise decisions about financing can be made while being ignorant to how many students need these services, but GW can help by collecting this information.

This could also help certain organizations, specifically the Multicultural Student Services Center and the LGBTQIA Resource Center, because they would have a better understanding of how much of this population they are serving and work to assist more individuals if that number is low.

GW should conduct research to ensure that it knows the full and intersectional demographics of its student population. The University has the campus, culture and ability to become a leader in serving LGBTQ students by starting this cutting edge practice.

Conducting formal data collection about how many LGBTQ students attend the University will advance this goal and serve as a model for how other universities should treat, count and serve their LGBTQ students.

— Jack Murphy, a freshman majoring in political science, is a Hatchet opinions writer.

Submissions — Deadlines for submissions are Friday 5 p.m. for Monday issues. They must include the author’s name, title, year in school and phone number. The GW Hatchet does not guarantee publication and reserves the right to edit all submissions for space, grammar and clarity.

Submit to opinions@gwhatchet.com Policy Statement — The GW Hatchet is produced by Hatchet Publications Inc., an independent, non-profit corporation. All comments should be addressed to the Board of Directors, which has sole authority for the content of this publication. Opinions expressed in signed columns are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of The GW Hatchet. All content of The GW Hatchet is copyrighted and may not be reproduced without written authorization from the editor in chief.

Culture

THE

SCENE

October 29, 2018 • Page 5

RAMEN

IN D.C.

Restaurants upgrade stereotypical college cuisine ANNA BOONE & CAROLINE FRENTZ REPORTERS

W

Capital One Arena Oct. 31 • $40 Celebrate Halloween in a large venue with Twenty One Pilots’ edgy pop rock.

WU-TANG CLAN

The Anthem Nov. 1 • $85 Wu-Tang Clan brings its passion from the 90’s to present day with cutting lyrics about social issues.

ELLE KING

Lincoln Theatre Nov. 2 • $25 Sassy “Ex’s & Oh’s” singer Elle King drives her performance with feminist songs on her Love Stuff Tour.

RELEASED ‘CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA,’ A NETFLIX SERIES THIS WEEK:

hile high-sodium ramen packets are usually a college staple, these D.C. noodle bars have authentic flavors that put the shrink-wrapped noodles on supermarket shelves to shame.

Ramen restaurants add real meats and spices to the mix, ingredients the powdered alternatives can’t provide. Whether you want to dress up your bowl with an egg, extra noodles or a flavor bomb of spice or soy, these joints bring you Japanese cuisine that transcends trends with endless options.

It may be tempting to opt for its 99-cent cousin, but you won’t regret swapping out the minute meal for the real deal at these D.C. ramen restaurants.

Tang Noodle and Kung Fu Tea

Daikaya Ramen Bar

The two-in-one business Tang Noodle and Kung Fu Tea made its debut last week in a spot close to campus. Tang Noodle serves ramen in the popular create-your-own style ($9.90), and also offers bubble tea in a variety of flavors ($3.25).

With a vegetable base, the ramen we ordered was topped with an assortment of veggies, like bok choy, bean sprouts, mushrooms and sauteed greens. The dish reminded us of the powdered chicken flavor that comes with store-bought ramen and the broth was extremely salty just like the packet. While the fresh toppings were a strong addition to the dish, it was all served in a deep cardboard bowl that made eating difficult.

The bubble tea at this restaurant shines and comes in flavors like Taro Milk Green Tea ($3.25) or Kung Fu Oolong Tea ($3.25). The drink balanced out its sugars with boba bubbles adding a perfect tapioca texture.

Even though this new joint had hiccups, the ramen at Tang Noodle hit the spot on a frigid afternoon and its proximity to campus is tempting.

Daikaya gives you traditional fare in an exclusive establishment. We had to wait 30 minutes for a table on a Thursday night because the restaurant doesn’t take reservations, but it was easy to pass the time strolling the streets of Chinatown, and the ramen was worth the wait.

The atmosphere recalls a modern and industrial tea house. With seating among strangers at low wooden shared tables, the restaurant created a warm and welcoming environment.

The restaurant offers traditional bowls for those with a refined palette. In a traditional noodle style popularly made in the city of Sapporo, Japan, the shoyu ramen ($13.25) consisted of rich miso ramen topped with sweet corn, bean sprouts, butter, garlic and pork. This classic rendition had dark umami flavors that soaked into the pork and boiled egg served on top.

Daikaya’s vegetable ramen ($13.75) did not pale in comparison. The veggies gave a charred flavor to the broth, which was brightened by the green onion garnish and house-made carrot hot sauce.

1900 M St. NW

Chaplin’s

JINYA Ramen Bar

Chaplin’s eclectic and quirky aesthetic is confidently vintage and its menu also utilizes unique ingredients.

The restaurant transports you back to the ’20s, projecting black and white films on the walls as waiters in suspenders serve ramen and strong cocktails under seductively dim lighting. Its outdoor patio, with space heaters for the fall, is comfortably brisk between sips of warm broth.

The fried vegetable gyoza ($8) was a perfectly crunchy and tangy teaser for our bowl of Ten Ten Men ramen with butter corn, wasabi root and a nutty broth ($15), which is shareable. The ramen broth tasted earthy and spicy and was hidden under a mountain of noodles.

Chaplin’s cocktails ($10 to $14) are playful and come served in brass monkey mugs and other large glasses. In between $1 sake bombs, sip until you get brain freeze from frozen cocktails like the Tokyo Tea ($12), made with a medley of liquors along with coconut liqueur, matcha and cream soda.

While the spot may be hindered by modern interpretations of its chain menu, the hipster vibe at JINYA Ramen Bar makes for a fun meal.

The Instagram-able location features hardwood and brick flooded with an intoxicating salty aroma. Its curated indie-electronic soundtrack drowned out slurping sounds and had us Shazam-ing every song.

The chain has locations across the United States and Canada, serving up crowd pleasers including spicy chicken ramen ($14.75), old skool ramen ($14) and JINYA tonkotsu black ($14.75). The ramen bar ups the ante with customization and a buildyour-own ramen option, with 27 toppings or add-ons ranging from 75 cents to $3.

The only downside is the menu displays the calorie count, but the balance of sweet and tangy flavors and extra noodles for only $3 overshadows any caloric consumption.

1501 Ninth St. NW

TWENTY ONE PILOTS

705 Sixth St. NW

1336 14th St. NW

DEREK LONG | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Old Skool Ramen ($14) is a traditional dish from JINYA Ramen Bar.

Alumna retrains herself to create art after life-altering injury SAVITA GOVIND REPORTER

Three years ago, Tyree Brown could be found stationed in front of a huge canvas taller than her, with her arms stretched out high depicting a subject using a graphite pencil.

But after a car accident rendered her quadriplegic in 2015 – two years into her studies at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design – Brown now works on 8-by-10-inch canvases, clutching her pencil and moving her left hand slowly to keep it steady.

Brown, who graduated in the spring with an associate’s degree in fine arts, specializes in charcoal and graphite mediums to create portraits and sketches. She could previously complete detailed drawings in about five days, but now spends between two weeks and a month finishing work with her non-dominant left hand.

Because her paralysis includes full or partial loss of function in all four of her limbs, she could barely write her name with her left hand in the months after her accident. But through occupational therapy, she trained herself to be able to function enough to continue pursuing art.

Before her injury, Brown said she

ISABELLA BRODT | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

After a car accident rendered her quadriplegic in 2015 – two years into her studies at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design – alumna Tyree Brown now works on 8-by-10-inch canvases with her non-dominant hand.

“had the ability to do everything” she wanted in her art, but now with some limitations, she has found a more defined focus.

“I have to see detail and just the smallest things within that need to be done in my art that I didn’t see before,” she said.

When deciding which subjects

to depict, Brown said she is drawn to recreating snapshots of life on the page, taking in light and shadows to produce monochromatic portraits.

She portrays her family frequently, along with people she finds on social media or in her daily life.

“I like style,” she said. “If I see something that deals with fashion

or just a really nice pose and someone’s looking at the camera very stylistically or fashionable. I like the modernness of people and how they look.”

Initially frustrated with having to slowly improve her artistic abilities, she said she built up her technique from sketchpad scribbles to detailed portraiture, regardless of the extra time spent improving her “mark making,” or drawing lines, dots and shapes on the page.

“I started to draw with mark making and then finally told myself I need to do this, better mark making with the ability I do have, and it just improved,” Brown said. “Once I realized, with the ability I do have, how I can go about drawing, it no longer frustrates me as much than it did in the beginning of my injury.”

A collection of eight portraits focused on social media personalities featured one work inspired by the motivating comments and recognition Brown received online from an unnamed fan, she said.

After the fan commented on one of Brown’s social media posts, praising her commitment to her art after her accident, Brown said she felt inspired to create a portrait of him.

“It’s things like that that people

do, even on social media, that they say, ‘Wow this encourages me,’” Brown said. “So along with my family supporting me and things that people say on social media that encourage me, that really helps to support me.”

Brown plans to continue working on a series of self portraits as she begins to shop around for galleries to showcase her recent work. She hopes to experiment with different mediums beyond graphite, creating more charcoal pieces while also dipping back to her painting skills.

Brown has also begun work with a disabilities vocational rehabilitation program to find a career path that suits her best, with goals of becoming a teacher or an assistant teacher who critiques and supports others in drawing or painting.

Deree Cox, Brown’s mother, said she always supported her daughter’s love of art, but didn’t realize it was something she could pursue professionally. Now she is one of Brown’s biggest supporters, driving her around when art showings and events are not wheelchair accessible.

“Not even now can she open and close her hand like we can,” Cox said. “She can’t say ‘hi’ like we can, but if we put that pen in her fingers, then she goes.”

Sports

October 29, 2018 • Page 6

GAMES OF THE WEEKMEN’S SOCCER

vs. Massachusetts 2 p.m. • Wednesday The Colonials will play their final game of the season against the Minutemen at Mount Vernon field.

NUMBER CRUNCH

47.1

MEN’S WATER POLO

vs. Fordham 10 a.m. • Sunday GW will go for its fourth consecutive win when the Colonials face off against the Rams at the Smith Center.

Number of seconds women’s cross country shaved off its team average time at the Atlantic 10 Championship Saturday

Men’s soccer on pace for worst conference record in eight years ALEC RICH REPORTER

Men’s soccer (5–8–3, 1–4– 2 A-10) is on pace for one of its worst conference records in recent years with just one Atlantic 10 game remaining in the season.

Currently situated in 12th place out of 13 teams in the conference, GW may finish the season with its lowest A-10 record since 2010, when the Colonials went 1-8-0. The record is a vast departure from last season, when the team finished third in the league with six wins in conference play.

“You see from the standings there’s a lot of parity in the league so everybody’s trying to beat each other,” head coach Craig Jones said.

“There’s no easy game in the conference – the 13th team can beat the first team on any given day, so each game is difficult.”

GW’s 2–0 loss Saturday against Saint Louis shut the Colonials out from postseason play. The team needed to earn six points in two games to have a chance of making the A-10 Championship.

The team lost five starters and gained nine newcomers – including seven freshmen – ahead of the fall season,

which Jones said has contributed to the team’s recent struggles.

“Good teams find a way to win games and we’re not kidding ourselves, we’re a young group, we knew that going in,” Jones said.

The Colonials have 23 total goals on the season, one more than their opponents have scored against them so far. Even with their high-powered offense, the Colonials continue to work on crossing and finishing in practice so they can convert their chances on the field into goals, Jones said.

After GW’s game against La Salle last weekend, senior defender Alexy Boehm said the team needed to be “more clinical” in the final third of the field after the Colonials outshot the Rams 22–15 but still ended the game in a 1–1 stalemate.

The team currently holds a .286 win percentage in conference play – its lowest mark in the last three seasons.

Jones said the team’s offensive-heavy approach has led to its opponents, especially those in the A-10, successfully stepping up their defensive efforts.

“We had a great year last year and I think this year early in the season we’ve showed

FILE PHOTO BY OLIVIA ANDERSON | PHOTO EDITOR

Graduate forward Haukur Hilmarsson goes up for the ball during a men’s soccer game against La Salle last week.

that we had a very good offensive threat, so teams have sat in and defended well,” Jones said. “We’ve had to try to break teams down, which isn’t easy for even professional teams to do week-in and week-out.”

Jones said the team’s youth and injuries to the backline have both played a factor in the team’s lower

A-10 performance this season compared to previous years. On the defensive end, the Colonials have allowed opponents to take an average of 14.2 shots per game compared to GW’s 12.0 shots per game.

Jones said his team will need to cut out some of the individual mistakes and will work on the Colonials’ for-

mation in the backline to help alleviate those errors. But with GW’s heavy focus on an offensive game, Jones said the defensive struggles are part of the trade-off.

“When you get the offensive group that we currently have, you want to play a pretty offensive game so with that, obviously you leave yourself a little bit exposed

defensively,” Jones said.

Jones cited four younger members of the team – sophomore forward Oscar Haynes Brown, freshman defender Marcelo Lage, freshman center Grant Barrientos and freshman midfielder Alhaji Turay – as having played consistent roles in the offense.

Haynes Brown currently leads the conference with 11 total goals this season, and Lage is the only Colonial who has started in all 16 of GW’s games. Jones said he is confident going forward that the team will be able to continue producing goals in the future.

With one game left before concluding their season, Jones said the team will take lessons from this year into the offseason.

“Maybe our expectations are too high, so we are always self-evaluating the team, the program, always seeing where we feel that we need to strengthen them,” Jones said.

“We’re going to go out and do that, hopefully with our recruiting. That never changes – we’re always looking to improve the squad.”

The Colonials cap off their season Wednesday against Massachusetts. Kick-off is slated for 2 p.m.

Golf heads into final tournament after fall slate plagued by cancellations KERRI CORCORAN

CONTRIBUTING SPORTS EDITOR

When golf arrives in Hawaii for its final tournament of the fall season Friday, the Colonials will be praying for a weekend without rain.

The team’s fall slate has been nearly cut in half by tournament cancellations and inclement weather. Two competitions – the VCU Janney Invitational and part of the Patriot Intercollegiate tournament – were canceled in September and the Joe Feagnes Marshall Invitational was shortened due to weather conditions that made the courses unplayable.

Head coach Chuck Scheinost said the disruptions to the season have provided a mental challenge for his golfers, who have spent multiple tournaments sitting in the clubhouse during rain delays without knowing if play would continue or not.

“I’ve been coaching 14 years, and I’ve never had anything like it,” Scheinost said.

GW will compete in its final tournament of the year Friday through Sunday at the Ka’anapali Classic Collegiate Invitational in Maui, Hawaii.

The team will go up against seven teams ranked

DEAN WHITELAW | HATCHET PHOTOGRAPHER

Senior Logan Lowe hits golf balls at a practice at the Army Navy Country Club Thursday. Golf’s fall schedule has been nearly cut in half by tournament cancellations and inclement weather.

in the top 50 NCAA programs in the Golf Coaches Association of America poll.

Senior Logan Lowe said in the rounds the team has been able to play, the Colonials have struggled to finish strong, but he thinks the fall season has given him and his teammates a chance to build confidence and learn more about their individual golf games.

The Colonials’ first event of the season, the Joe Feagnes Marshall Invitational, was shortened from 54 holes to 36 due to rain. The following weekend, GW was slated to compete at the VCU Janney Invitational, but the outing was canceled as a result of an impending storm and tornado warnings.

Lowe said his squad was

looking forward to competing at VCU, and was especially disappointed the tournament was canceled. The Tuckahoe Creek Course – the Rams’ home course – is a team favorite, he said.

“A couple times I think myself and the guys were ready to go and we wanted to play these tournaments and the weather is kind of, kept

us from that, which is a bummer,” Lowe said.

After the tournament at VCU was canceled, the coaching staff quickly added the Patriot Intercollegiate match hosted by George Mason.

The Colonials finished third out of a field of 13 teams in their first day on the course at George Mason, but the second day of play was again scrapped as a storm closed in on the Fairfax, Va. area.

The two full tournaments that GW has competed in this season – the Denver Paintbrush Invitational and the Elon Invitational in October – have concluded with mixed results.

The Colonials collectively struggled in Denver, placing 10th out of 12 teams. The tournament went on, but the team was still faced with weather challenges as snow fell on the greens off and on throughout the two-day event.

A bright spot in the Colonials’ performance in Colorado was Lowe, who placed third out of 60 golfers and finished five strokes under par.

Scheinost said he expected the team to struggle with consistency as a result of the learning curve that comes with playing with such an inexperienced group. Four of

the Colonials’ seven rostered players are freshmen or sophomores.

A similar story unfolded at Elon, where GW again struggled to post consistent numbers. The team finished 12th out of 16 on the first day of play, but made a complete reversal on the second day, standing at 10 strokes under par with four holes to play.

Although the Colonials ultimately suffered “hiccups” in the final four holes that pushed them back down to 10th place in the standings, Scheinost said the burst of exceptional play is evidence of what his team is capable of on the course.

With the final tournament of the fall around the corner, Scheinost said he is confident that given a full weekend, his team will be able to stick with the big name programs in Maui.

“We can say they’re going to beat us or we can say we’re going to go out and play,” Scheinost said. “At the end of the day, we have the chance to topple some big boys.”

Tee-off for the first day of play at the Hawaii Ka’anapali Classic Collegiate Invitational is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Hawaii Standard Time Friday.

– Kate McCarthy contributed reporting.

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM MEN’S BASKETBALL’S EXHIBITION GAME BARBARA ALBERTS SPORTS EDITOR

Men’s basketball kicked off its 2018-19 season with a 69–64 win over Catholic in an exhibition game Sunday.

While the one tuneup contest might not tell us much about how the rest of the season will turn out and doesn’t count toward either team’s record, it provides our first live look at the team this year.

Below are five observations from the team’s victory Sunday and takeaways that may suggest what is to come during the next five months.

1. Challenges on the perimeter

The Colonials were cold from beyond the arc against Catholic, going 2-for-16 from the three-point line.

GW’s struggle made it clear there is no Colonial who is a consistent distance shooter as seven players attempted three-point shots.

When Catholic played a zone defense, GW was forced to spread the floor and take outside shots, but the ball was still not falling for the Colonials. Sophomore guard Terry Nolan Jr., the top returning three-point shooter,

went 0-for-3 from beyond the arc.

The team’s struggle from beyond the arc is a continued trend from last season. GW went 32.1 percent from the arc – the second-lowest threepoint shooting percentage in the Atlantic 10 – during the 2017-18 season.

With an often four-guard lineup on the court and nine guards rostered, the team will need to sharpen up from the perimeter when they face off against teams who like to pack the paint.

2. A preview of struggles down low

The exhibition game could be characterized by the Colonials’ struggle to secure three-pointers, but that doesn’t mean the team was without challenges in the paint.

Even though GW outsized the Catholic lineup, the Colonials still allowed the Cardinals to out-rebound them 17–16 on the offensive glass and 48–46 overall.

GW’s front court lacks experience overall and will likely be a weak point for the team throughout the year.

Although junior forward Arnaldo Toro returns to the lineup, he does not fill a true

big-man role. Sophomore forward Javier Langarica and 6-foot-9-inch freshman forward Marcus Littles should bring more to the table under the glass, but with Littles injured and Langarica yet to fully grow into himself as a player, the team’s interior play remains a question mark.

The game could not provide a full look at the team’s play underneath the glass with key pieces of GW’s defense missing on the court.

Joseph said his squad needed to play with more urgency underneath the glass despite the limited front court.

With GW largely playing guard-heavy sets with an athletic five, scoring ability is also lacking on the post. Many of the Colonials’ points down low against Catholic came from guards penetrating the defense or finding open looks under the hoop with little to no post play.

The performance raises the question of whether GW’s interior will be enough to maintain strong play on the post throughout the season – and if the lack of inside presence will push guards to force the issue too often.

3. Free throws raised a red flag

Another glaring shooting issue on the stat sheet for the Colonials was their freethrow shooting. GW went 15–32 from the charity stripe and not a single Colonial was perfect from the line.

Joseph chalked up the missed free points to nerves but said the performance was “unacceptable” from his team.

Given that free throws are an integral part of the game that are practiced time after time, the inability to capitalize on free throws is a concerning issue and should be one of the major things GW is improving down the stretch.

It is not uncommon for A-10 and postseason contests to go down to the wire and a continued inability to knock down shots from the charity stripe will not bode well for GW’s record or longevity.

4. Aggressive defense lacked results

Defense has always been a key component to GW’s play under Joseph and the game against Catholic showcased the kind of aggressive and energetic play Joseph expects from his team.

But the team’s aggression on the court led to guard

fouls. Mazzulla and Nolan found themselves in foul trouble toward the end of the night, forcing Joseph to play bigger and rely more on DJ Williams and Langarica.

While the Colonials did force the Cardinals to make 15 turnovers on the night, GW let a Division III team stay competitive and the stat sheet shows a team that matched GW in nearly every category.

The most obvious defensive issue for the Colonials was their matchup against Catholic senior guard Jimmy Golaszewski, who dropped 28 points on 7-for-15 shooting, including four threepoint shots.

GW’s inability to stifle a team’s heavy shooter spells trouble for late-season contests against players like Davidson sophomore guard Kellan Grady, who has already proven himself to be one of the top scorers in the conference.

5. Players appeared comfortable in new roles

For a team that returns just two of its starters from last season, a number of players, seemed more comfortable in their new roles.

Sophomore guard Justin

Mazzulla looked confident on the ball playing the leading guard role, driving into traffic and taking it to the rim more often than he did last season – with more success.

The redshirt junior duo of Armel Potter and Williams also looked fit and confident on the court. Williams looked especially comfortable on the ball, and his team-leading 15 points on the night signify he should be a heavy contributor to GW’s points column.

High scoring and significant minutes on the defensive end from the transfers is what GW needs to win consistently throughout the year.

The game also gave a first look at two of GW’s three freshmen – guard Shandon Brown and forward Mezie Offurum – who both looked to be important bench pieces for the team.

The freshmen will need more time to mature on the bench for GW but their development could help GW become more competitive than its expected No. 13 finish in the conference.

Langarica looked more comfortable on the court and contributed nine points and seven rebounds on the night, albeit against a smaller, guardoriented movement offense.